Fishermen want Devananda to soften stand

by P. Krishnaswamy

Minister Douglas Devananda reiterated his earlier stand that he would sail across the Palk Straits to the South Indian Rameswaram coast with 5,000 fishermen in protest against poaching by Indian fishermen.

However, representatives of fishermen's societies said they desired a milder approach. Devananda, a parliamentarian representing the Jaffna district and leader of the EPDP said that poaching and the destructive fishing methods by Indian fishermen have posed a threat to the livelihood of over 18,000 fisher families in the Northern province.

Their repeated representations and appeals to the Indian authorities had fallen on deaf ears.

Recently, they handed over to the Indian parliamentary delegation memoranda addressed to the Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and the Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Jayalalitha Jeyaram.

If all attempts to reach an amicable settlement for the Northern fishermen's woes fail, he would have no alternative but to "Sail across the Palk Straits despite any Naval blockades," he said.

Representatives of the Alliance of the Northern Fishermen's Associations (ANFAs), an umbrella organisation of all fishermen's societies in Kilinochchi, Mannar, Mullaitivu and Jaffna districts told the Sunday Observer that although they welcomed Minister Devananda's stance, they hoped to hold discussions with their Indian counterparts to resolve all cross-border issues without causing harm to fishermen on either side.